This is the week before Valentine’s Day. Here are some ideas to help you teach your children about showing love.

Creatively work together to display each day’s verse on the fridge. (cut, color, or paint a heart and put the verse on it)

Repeat the verse often during the day as you reinforce it as you go – here a little, there a little. (Deuteronomy 6:7), (Isaiah 28:10)

Read the Bible stories yourself and then tell them in your own words. Be animated and use visuals when possible.

Have fun establishing God’s Wird in your children this week!!!!

Day One

Bible Verse or Thought: Proverbs 17:17 – A friend loves at all times.

Story: David and Jonathan (1 Samuel 18 1-4)

Activity for Baby to 3: Have a friend over to play with child. Tell story of David and Jonathan. Share toys. For infant, spend time talking about and thanking God for all the baby’s friends, after reading story.

Older Activity: Have child help make cookies and then invite a friend over to share them with. Talk about ways to show love to our friends.

Day Two

Bible Verse or Thought: 1 John 4:7 – Love one another.

Stories: Elisha’s Friends (2 Kings 4:8-11); Abraham and Lot (Genesis 13:1-18)

Activity for Baby to 3: Tell the story of Elisha and talk about how you prepared a room for baby to show your love for him. Point out things in baby’s room.

Older Activity: Read story. Draw a picture of the story.

Day Three

Bible Verse or Thought: Galatians 5:13 – Help one another
Story: Four Friends (Mark 2:1-12)

Activity for Baby to 3: Make a card for a friend and pray for for their friends.

Older Activity: Same as for Baby to 3

Day Four

Bible Verse or Thought: 2 Corinthians 1:24 – We are helpers.

Story: We Work Together – (Nehemiah 1:1-11, 2:1-20, 3:1-32, 6:15-16)

Activity for Baby to 3: Help fold laundry or pick up toys.

Older Activity: Play blocks together and pretend to build the wall as you tell the story. Dads, let child hammer some nails in some scrap wood while you supervise.

Day Five

Bible Verse or Thought: Ephesians 4:32 – Be kind to one another.

Stories: A Kind Man (The Good Samaritan) – (Luke 10:30-35); Philip’s New Friend – (Acts 8:1-39)

Activity for Baby to 3: Do something special for baby or child like making him cookies or getting him a new inexpensive toy. Give him a hug and lead child to give someone a hug. Talk about ways he can show kindness.

Older Activity: Read story. Say Philip showed kindness by reading the Bible to his friend and telling him about God. Let’s be kind to our friend ______ and tell him about God. Lead child to send a Bible verse or Bible story to one of his friends.

Susanna Wesley had 15 children and spent an hour a week with each child individually, helping he or she to be totally submitted to God.  When she was asked about her method of preparing her children for spiritual maturity she replied: “No one can, without renouncing the world, in the most literal sense, observe my method; and there are few, if any, that would entirely devote above twenty years of the prime of life in hopes to save the souls of their children, which they think may be saved without so much ado; for that was my principal intention, however unskillfully and unsuccessfully managed.”  (Read more about Susanna in the book, Susanna: Mother of the Wesleys)

May you have a fulfilling year training up children!!!!

Our son Jon proposed to Mallory tonight!  She is an answer to 25 years of praying.  “We didn’t even know her name, but we were praying for her just the same, that the Lord would write His name upon her heart, because somewhere in the course of this life, our little boy would need a Godly wife.”  We are very thankful for God’s gift of Mallory to Jon and our family.

Please listen to this song.  We first heard it when our boys were very small.  It is a father singing about the little girl that will one day become his little boy’s wife.  Becca and I listened to it together when Josh proposed to her;  Mallory and I just finished listening to it together.

11-somewhere-in-the-world [mp3 download available at Somewhere In The World (LP Version)]

Pray for your children’s future mates.  God is faithful to hear and answer your prayers.  Thank you, Father!!!

I have recently discovered I am not super woman  – surprise, surprise -  and can not continue to work full time and adequately accomplish the  things that God has for me to do .

I am thrilled to resume my God-given role in the home again after working for five years.  Although I will greatly miss the people I have had the privilege of meeting and working with, and am sad to leave the children I have so enjoyed watching grow and learn, I know this is what God wants for me.

Right now I am thankful for the opportunity  to spend every day with our 11 month old grandson and his mom, Becca, and dad, Josh, as they have recently moved in with us.  In January they will move to California to answer their calling to be a positive influence in the entertainment industry.  Becca and I are duplicating some of my visuals (like Joe) for her to use with Grant.

I am now available to take calls any time of the day from Jer who lives in California, Jon who travels a lot, and Jenny who lives in Orlando.  This last week I loved  having all of the Daws clan (but Jenny  ) under the same roof as Jer has been home for a visit.  We have enjoyed our time together, but missed Jenny, of course.  We had fun Wednesday night as everyone carved a pumpkin and then Friday night as we made fondue,  complete with cheese appetizer and chocolate dessert.

Although our children are grown and don’t physically need us as much, our prayers are even more important in their lives than ever, as they face many challenges in this world.  Billy and I are able to spend more time in prayer for them and also for others each morning. Please give us the privilege of praying for you as well; just email your prayer requests to sheilahdaws@gmail.com

I am now free to be more of  a support and encouragement to Billy in ministry, which is what we have always enjoyed doing together.    Also, it has continually been such a blessing for us to use  our home as a place of encouragement and refreshment  for others and now I am able to do more of that.

Billy and I, and the family, are running on a regular basis and are changing some eating habits.  Becca and I are enjoying trying some new recipes.  I am researching the importance of what we eat  and the affects it has  on our health -  something I have been interested in for years.  I hope to start taking classes soon in regards to that.

I am typing up my book of activities I used in teaching scripture to my children through the years and now am able to fulfill Deuteronomy 4:9 by having a part in teaching my grandchild.   I will soon be sharing on this blog some of the material from the book.

Without my salary, we are in a position once again in our lives to see God miraculously provide for our needs as we exercise our faith in Him. God has led us to this point and “where God guides, He provides”  We have a journal full of entries of how God has provided for us through the years.

I am so thankful that God has given me this opportunity to be at home again, not that I deserve it, but that in His grace and mercy He has chosen to bless me with the desire of my heart.

God is good

He is always right

And His timing is always perfect